Chapter 113: Jiang Wanrou’s Regret

Chapter 113 Jiang Wanrou's Regrets

The palace women were far from docile. Among them was a fair-skinned, voluptuous one named Shuang Xue, who had previously tried various ways to gain Lu Feng's attention. Before leaving the capital, Jiang Wanrou had instructed Cuizhu to keep a close eye on her. The girl had spared no expense to inquire about the prince's preferences and later began copying Jiang Wanrou's fashion choices. Of course, Jiang Wanrou would never allow such women into the palace.

Fortunately, Lu Feng never interfered in harem affairs. Jiang Wanrou didn’t bring it up, leaving those ladies-in-waiting waiting anxiously in the Prince of Qi’s residence. He hardly remembered them, only inquiring about the consorts who had borne children for the late emperor.

After over twenty years of Emperor Shengzu’s diligent governance, coupled with the tributes from the Turkic peace settlement and the treasures seized from Chen Fu’s stronghold, the imperial treasury was now overflowing. The consorts continued to live in luxury, and Jiang Wanrou had no intention of depriving them. Those who had borne children were easier to manage—at least they had offspring to rely on and didn’t cause trouble. What troubled her were the young, beautiful consorts.

The youngest was only sixteen, widowed before even meeting the late emperor.

How could such young beauties in their prime resign themselves to a lifetime of solitude at the imperial mausoleum? They wept pitifully daily outside the Phoenix Palace gates. Though the late emperor’s body was scarcely laid to rest, even a sixteen-year-old consort was technically a "senior" by protocol. Jiang Wanrou, who had spent years cultivating a reputation for virtue, now as empress, naturally had to embody the ideal of a "benevolent sovereign," treating the young consorts with courtesy.

Until, on several occasions, some deliberately appeared when Lu Feng was present. Dressed in mourning white, they wept pitifully, their red-rimmed eyes stealing longing looks at the emperor.

After all, people sought higher ground. The late emperor was gone, and they were still unmarried young women—how could they bear to wither away in the palace? The current emperor was in his prime, his once-lame leg now imperceptible thanks to Jiang Wanrou’s years of meticulous care. Clad in imperial yellow robes, he was stern, majestic, and exceptionally handsome.

Unlike the late emperor, who had many consorts, the current sovereign’s harem consisted solely of the empress, and he had only two princes. Though the crown prince had been named early, his frail health was common knowledge. The emperor was still vigorous—who could say what the future held?

...

Jiang Wanrou wasn’t blind. Those gazes clung to Lu Feng like glue, and it infuriated her! She had married him in the bloom of her youth, tending to him through his darkest days after his leg injury, when he was moody and despondent. Though the Duke’s household hadn’t mistreated her, and she wouldn’t call herself a "humble wife," seeing others eyeing the towering tree she had painstakingly nurtured—now ripe for the picking—made her so angry she vented her anger by eating two extra bowls of rice!

That very night, the empress set about revising palace regulations, declaring piously, "Without rules, there is no order." Layer by layer, the new edicts confined the young consorts to their quarters to pray for the late emperor. The palace grew noticeably quieter, and even the consorts with children dared not test Jiang Wanrou’s patience. Observers quickly realized the empress was not someone to be trifled with.

Moreover, her actions were above reproach—no beatings, no reprimands, no cuts to their allowances. By having the young consorts "pray" for the late emperor, she even bolstered her reputation for magnanimity. Such tactics—no wonder she enjoyed the emperor’s exclusive favor.

None of the consorts who had safely borne and raised children under the late emperor’s reign were fools. They swiftly discerned who truly held power in the palace. Some volunteered to assist Jiang Wanrou with palace affairs; others visited during her leisure to play cards—games she never lost. Some even catered to her tastes, having somehow learned her fondness for romantic novels and slipping her stacks of tales about scholars and beauties, much to her bemusement.

This episode solidified Jiang Wanrou’s authority. Palace denizens, high and low, rushed to curry favor, and she gradually grew into her role as empress. It dawned on her—no wonder everyone craved supremacy. Surrounded by flattery and deference, with power over life and death—who wouldn’t relish such a feeling?

***

Three months passed, neither too long nor too short. The first winter snow blanketed the imperial city in white, while commoners donned colorful garments for the festive New Year. Lu Feng used this time to consolidate his rule, promoting loyalists and tightening his grip on governance. Meanwhile, Jiang Wanrou steadily organized palace affairs, her regal bearing growing more pronounced.

One night, the Phoenix Palace was brightly lit, maids and eunuchs dismissed to a distance. Lu Feng shed his stiff imperial robes, his inner garment loosely open, reclining with his head in Jiang Wanrou’s lap as she massaged him.

Even as emperor, Lu Feng still practiced martial arts for half an hour after morning court. His muscles were firm and well-defined, and Jiang Wanrou’s hands ached from kneading. "Hmph, you only know how to torment me," she complained playfully.

It wasn’t as if there were no eunuchs or maids—why must it always be her? The same went for morning court. With so many attendants in the palace, why must she be roused to dress him?

Hadn’t he been fully capable during their northern hunt—building fires, fetching water? How had he become so helpless back in the palace, unable to even put on clothes?

In retaliation, she gave his waist a retaliatory pinch. Lu Feng grunted, catching her hand with a low chuckle.

"If I tormented others, you wouldn’t like it."

Today marked the end of the mourning period. Days earlier, Jiang Wanrou had proposed that, to curb palace expenses and avoid extravagance so soon after the emperor’s accession—while still treating the late emperor’s consorts fairly—those who had borne children should remain in the palace, while the childless ones be sent home to avoid lifelong confinement.

Lu Feng raised a brow. "Is the court so poor we're starving?"

Surely they needn't be stingy on women’s upkeep.

Jiang Wanrou smiled. "Many consorts are still so young, never even having seen the late emperor. It’s a pity to confine them in the palace’s loneliness forever."

More importantly, she feared that prolonged confinement might drive some to desperation. Better to offer them a way out—everyone would benefit.

Lu Feng looked at her intently for a long moment. "I’ve told you before—speak plainly. Stop worrying needlessly."

Nearing thirty, he could have fathered those young consorts, all younger than Jiang Wanrou. What she noticed, he saw even more clearly.

The late emperor had had a sharp eye—every consort was a great beauty. Yet their covert flirtations left Lu Feng completely indifferent, even amused.

Having known the brilliance of the sun and moon, how could one linger for the flicker of fireflies? Such tactics seemed as laughable as child's play before him. The bashful resistance of a girl, the coy allure of a newlywed, or even the seductive maturity—none could compare to the fruit he had ripened with his own hands, its exquisite flavor beyond the reach of those ordinary beauties.

Lu Feng had no patience for roundabout talk. He gazed at her, his voice soft yet resolute: "Rest assured, there will be no one else."

Whether it was this consort or that, the Beauty from Prince Qi's household, or future imperial selections—there would be none.

Even the late emperor rarely used the harem to balance court politics. Lu Feng's temper was even sterner than his father's. What he disliked, no one could force upon him.

He'd appointed the crown prince early for two reasons. First, he had learned from the past—the late emperor's delay in appointing an heir had led to brothers turning on each other in bloodshed. He would never repeat such a mistake. Second, it was for Jiang Wanrou. In this world, she was the only one qualified to stand by his side and share his burial a century later.

Jiang Wanrou had been stunned into silence for a long moment. Unlike before, she didn't put on her usual virtuous act. Instead, she spoke carefully, with solemnity: "Lu Feng, an emperor's word is law. I will take it seriously."

Lu Feng replied calmly, "When have I ever lied to you?"

Since it worried her, then he would send them away. However, the childless imperial concubines could not be returned to their families, nor could they be allowed to remarry. Even if only in name, they were still his father's consorts. As a filial son, Lu Feng could hardly cuckold the late emperor.

So with a stroke of his vermilion brush, he decreed that the childless imperial concubines be relocated to the outlying palace, to depart once the mourning period ended. As for the Beauty from Prince Qi's household—originally forced upon him by the late emperor—she too was sent to the palace. Jiang Wanrou was finally at ease, though afterward, Lu Feng often teased her as "my little jealous one," leaving her fuming but helpless.

……

Jiang Wanrou, hearing this, burned with embarrassed anger and pinched his waist again. "You're still bringing it up!"

This time, Lu Feng didn’t indulge her. In a breath, his dark eyes snapped open, and he flipped her beneath him, his voice low and commanding:

"How dare you. I shall charge you with the crime of great disrespect."

After months of adjustment, Lu Feng and Jiang Wanrou maintained their imperial decorum in public, but in private, they remained as they had always been, addressing each other casually. Jiang Wanrou wasn’t the least bit afraid of him. Her snow-white legs coiled around his waist, slowly rubbing against him.

"This consort wrongs me. This concort has been most obedient."

Her thick lashes fluttered, her dark, glistening eyes wide with false innocence.

Had her fingertips not been tracing slow, provocative circles on his chest, Lu Feng might have believed her.

Three chaste months had left both Lu Feng and Jiang Wanrou parched. Now that the mourning period had ended, she had bathed, perfumed herself, and dusted with fragrant powder. Even if Lu Feng had chosen to rest in the Hall of Mental Cultivation that night, she would have brought him a bowl of tonic soup.

But Lu Feng came straight to the Phoenix Palace. Jiang Wanrou, intent on seduction, had discarded her undergarments, wearing only a scarlet nightgown. Her dark hair was loosely gathered at her neck, a silk sash cinched at her waist—one gentle tug, and all would be revealed.

Yet Lu Feng refused to take the bait. Though lying on her bed, he pretended to be proper, removing only his outer robe and demanding she massage him.

Jiang Wanrou refused to concede. She subtly tugged at her thin garment, baring a flawless shoulder, her raven hair cascading over the lush curves of her chest. Lu Feng lifted a lazy glance, then closed his eyes indifferently.

"Why stop? Continue."

No wonder Jiang Wanrou pinched him.

……

Her skin, whiter than snow, glowed like jade beneath the crimson silk, like snow-laden plum blossoms. Jiang Wanrou smirked inwardly, vexed: *Who are you trying to deceive? I know exactly what you're like!*

Meeting his darkened gaze, she slowly pulled her robe back up, covering her shoulder completely. Then she looped her arms around his neck, her breath warm against his ear: "This concort is weary. I shall retire—"

The last word never left her lips. For the rest of the night, Jiang Wanrou regretted everything.

Not for provoking him, but for forgetting—after so long apart—that Lu Feng was clumsy in bed!

She’d forgotten the lubricant.

Alas, Lu Feng gave her no chance to speak. Beads of sweat glistened on her porcelain nose as the golden curtains swayed. Her vision blurred, arms limp, Jiang Wanrou melted limp as melted wax.

Somewhere in the haze, she felt she’d forgotten something. But her body and mind were wholly claimed by Lu Feng, leaving no room for thought.